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CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Tyler Evans blocked an extra point with 1:03 remaining to send Murray State (7-4, 5-3) to a 35-34 win over Southeast Missouri (3-8, 2-6) Saturday afternoon in the 2011 season finale at Houck Stadium.
 
After Matt Scheible scored on a 2-yard run to pull Southeast to within a point, Drew Gelbach lined up for the point after. Evans came through a big surge up the middle to block the kick.
 
Southeast, however, forced a turnover on the ensuing possession. Johnnie Morgan jarred the ball loose from Mike Harris and fell on the ball at the Redhawks 43-yardline.
 
Two plays later, Scheible threw a pass downfield to Chantae Ahamefule on a 2^nd-and-8, but Ahamefule dropped the ball inside Southeast's 10-yardline. The Racers would then stop Southeast on a 4^th-and-7 when they flushed Scheible out of the pocket to force a bad pass.
 
“That's a tough way to end the season,” said Southeast head coach Tony Samuel. “We played hard and never gave up. I was proud of our effort.”
 
Southeast outscored Murray State, 20-7, in the fourth quarter, but it wasn't enough in a dogfight that featured 169 total plays and 948 yards of total offense.
 
Murray State wasted little time going to work with its spread attack, marching 70 yards in seven plays to take a quick 7-0 lead on the game's opening possession. Casey Brockman scored on a 6-yard run to cap the drive which lasted less than two minutes.
 
The Racers had a chance to add to its lead when Kienan Cullen set up for a 25-yard field goal attempt, but a mis-handled snap kept it a one-possession game.
 
Steve Hendry forced a fumble when he sacked Brockman and Joe Malolo recovered in Murray State territory at the 46.
 
An 18-yard completion from Scheible to Spencer Davis gave Southeast a 1^st-and-Goal at the Racer 7, before Scheible threw a touchdown pass to a wide open Tyler French to knot the game at 7-7 with 2:48 left in the first quarter.
 
Cullen attempted another field goal, this time from 40 yards out, but missed when his kick fell short of the crossbar.
 
Southeast answered with an 8-play, 77-yard drive that culminated in a 1-yard run by Scheible. Scheible's 20^th career rushing touchdown gave the Redhawks their first lead at 14-7 with 12 minutes remaining in the second quarter.
 
The Racers manufactured a 10-play, 70-yard strike to tie the game at 14-14 nearly three minutes later.
 
After a offside penalty on a 4^th-and-4 gave Murray State a first down at the Redhawks 23-yardline, Brockman immediately made Southeast pay when he completed a pass to Pat Robertson, who dashed 23 yards to the end zone at the 9:05 mark.
 
Following a big stop on fourth down, Southeast took over on downs at its own 30-yardline. Dantre Johnson intercepted Scheible and ran 45 yards to the Redhawk-12 on the next play.
 
Murray State then used some trickery on a 3^rd-and-8 when Brockman caught a 12-yard pass from wide receiver Ricky Mitchell who took Brockman's initial pitch in the backfield and heaved it ball down the far sideline. That play gave the Racers a 21-14 lead at the half.
 
The Racers added to their lead when Brockman hooked up with Dexter Barnett for a 29-yard scoring strike to give Murray State a 28-14 advantage with 7:12 left to play in the third quarter.
 
Ron Coleman's 1-yard touchdown run sliced the lead in half on the ensuing drive, before Southeast's defense forced the Racers to punt.
 
On the first play following Cullen's first punt of the game, Davis took a Scheible pitch and ran 66 yards to give Southeast a first down at the Murray-6. Scheible then completed a 1-yard pass to tight end Marq Goodlitt on fourth down to tie the game at 28-28 with 9:53 on the clock.
 
Scheible completed 19-of-28 passes for 143 yards and two touchdowns, and ran for 105 yards and career-high three TDs to polish off his remarkable Southeast career.
 
“Matt is a guy who does everything exactly the way you want it every single time,” said Samuel. “He is a special individual and it's going to be tough to replace him.”
 
Davis followed with a career-high 127 yards on just three carries, averaging 42.3 yards per attempt. He also caught a game-high four passes for 23 yards. In addition, Davis piled up 240 all-purpose yards.
 
Defensively, Blake Peiffer broke Southeast's all-time single-season record when he recorded 15 tackles. Peiffer, who finished with 151 tackles in 11 starts, surpassed current assistant coach Nick Stauffer's 150 in 2008. Peiffer broke the record late in the fourth quarter. He registered double-digit tackles in each of his last nine games of the year.
 
Philip Klaproth and Kweku Arkorful followed with nine tackles apiece.
 
Brockman completed 31-of-44 passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns to lead Murray State.
 
Meanwhile, Harris had 130 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
 
Southeast said goodbye to 14 seniors, who suited up for their last game at Houck Stadium.
 
The Redhawks, who suffered one-point losses in their final two games, ended their season at 3-8 overall and 2-6 in the OVC.